North Portland's pioneering vegan restaurant Proper Eats is closing at end of April

North Portland's Proper Eats Grocery & Cafe is closing at the end of April. The vegan business featured a small market in the front, and a cozy dining room in the back that was known for hearty, comforting fare.

"It is with a very heavy heart that I announce the closure of Proper Eats at the end of April," Hayes wrote on Facebook. "It has been beyond amazing to have this business. This community feels like family and has treated Proper Eats as such."

Hayes said that the restaurant and market would remain open through the end of the month, giving regular customers a last chance to come in for hearty comfort fare like lentil shepherd's pie and cornmeal-crusted fried tempeh. Hayes plans to sell off the grocery's inventory, and serve as much of the full menu as possible until closing on April 29.

Proper Eats' departure doesn't close the books on vegan fare in the heart of St. Johns. The vegan Indian restaurant The Sudra recently reopened its second location a block west on Lombard Street after being closed by a fire last year. And it's possible that another vegan eatery could take over the Proper Eats space later this year, though the owners of that business said on Tuesday afternoon that they weren't ready to make any announcements.

Proper Eats was a pioneer in plant-based cooking when it opened in 2005. At the time, vegan eating was far from the mainstream, and people who advocated meals without meat, dairy or eggs were seen almost as the lunatic fringe. A dozen years later, vegan is everywhere, and you can find animal-free fare at most of the city's food cart pods and options at many restaurants. Proper Eats also was a pioneer in the resurgence of the downtown St. Johns area, which has gone from gritty to almost trendy in the last dozen years.